The ameliorative role of Physalis pubescens L. against neurological impairment associated with streptozotocin induced diabetes in rats

Neuropathy is considered a critical complication of diabetes mellitus (DM). Scientific studies are needed to relieve these painful complications. The current study aims to estimate the ameliorative role of Physalis juice (PJ) against neurological impairment in streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rats. Type 1 DM was induced after one week of injecting rats with 55 mg STZ/kg body weight. PJ-treated rats were orally administered 5 ml PJ/kg body weight per day for 28 days after induction of diabetes. A small piece of the cerebral cortex of rats was fixed and used for histopathological investigations. The remaining portion of the cerebral cortex was homogenized for biochemical and molecular analyses. As compared to the controls, STZ-injected rats showed significant elevations in the levels of blood glucose, tumor necrosis factor alfa, interleukin-1β, malondialdehyde, nitric oxide, and expression levels of caspase-3 and B-cell lymphoma-2 associated X-protein. Additionally, remarkable declines in the levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor, monoamines, B-cell lymphoma-2, glutathione, as well as the activities and gene expression levels of superoxide dismutase, catalase, glutathione peroxidase, and glutathione reductase in STZ-treated rats were reported. Moreover, some histopathological alterations were observed in the brain cortex of the STZ-treated rats. On the other hand, the administration of PJ substantially reduced the blood glucose and alleviated the above-mentioned alterations in all the studied parameters of the cerebral cortex. In conclusion, an oral administration of 5 ml PJ/kg revealed a neuroprotective action against neurodegenerative diabetes-induced complications in rats, which might be due to the reported antioxidative and anti-inflammatory actions of PJ. Thus, further therapeutic studies are recommended to apply PJ in the treatment regimen of diabetes.